1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a swivel device and a display apparatus equipped with the device.
2. Description of Related Art
There is known a swivel device that supports a display portion of a video display apparatus such as a liquid crystal TV set and turns around the vertical axis so that orientation of the video display portion can be changed (for example, see JP-A-06-292106 and JP-A-2005-109626).
JP-A-06-292106 discloses a turn table (a swivel device) equipped with a swivel gear disposed on a base in a pivotable manner around the vertical axis, and a swivel frame disposed on the swivel gear in a pivotable manner around the vertical axis. This turn table includes a motor and a speed reduction gear mechanism outside the swivel frame, and a driving force of the motor is transmitted to the swivel gear via the speed reduction gear mechanism, so that the swivel gear turns. The swivel frame is adapted to be capable of turning when the swivel gear turns.
JP-A-2005-109626 discloses a swivel device equipped with a fixed portion and a movable portion that is adapted to be capable of turning around the vertical axis with respect to the fixed portion, in which a motor and a transmission mechanism are disposed inside the movable portion, while a rack gear that engages a gear of the transmission mechanism is provided to the fixed portion. In this swivel device, a driving force of the motor inside the movable portion is transmitted to the rack gear via the transmission mechanism so that the movable portion can be turned around the vertical axis. A lead wire cable (lead wire) for supplying electric power to the motor is drawn out onto the top surface of the movable portion, and this lead wire cable is drawn out externally through an opening formed in a cover member that covers the movable portion. The lead wire cable drawn out through the opening of the cover member is connected electrically to a lead wire cable drawn out from a display apparatus main body (the video display portion). Thus, electric power is supplied from the display apparatus main body (video display portion) to the motor inside the movable portion.
However, since the conventional turn table (swivel device) described in JP-A-06-292106 has the structure in which the speed reduction gear mechanism and the motor for turning the swivel gear are disposed outside the swivel frame, it is necessary to ensure a region for disposing the speed reduction gear mechanism and the motor outside the region where the swivel gear and the swivel frame are disposed. Therefore, there is a problem that the turn table becomes large by the region where the speed reduction gear mechanism and the motor are disposed.
According to the conventional swivel device described in JP-A-2005-109626, a swivel member can be downsized because the motor and the transmission mechanism are disposed inside the movable portion. However, since the motor and the transmission mechanism turns together with the movable portion, the lead wire cable drawn out onto the top surface of the movable portion also turns together with the movable portion. Therefore, there is a problem that the lead wire cable can be damaged when it contacts with the opening of the cover member as the movable portion turns.